Rajauri deaths: No conclusive report yet, MLAs demand CBI probe

After members of the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly expressed grave concern over recent deaths of 17 people in Badhaal village, Rajouri, due to a mysterious illness and demanded a CBI probe to pin-point exact cause of their deaths, health and medical education minister Sakina Itoo said that a probe was already on and the house should wait for its report. Different reports by various labs suggested different toxins in various samples but the exact cause of these deaths has not been pinpointed till date.” Choudhary said he felt a larger conspiracy behind deaths of people in Badhaal, Kulgam and Kathua and demanded a CBI probe. NFL, FSSAI Ghaziabad found chlorphenapyr and chlorpyrophos from food samples and CFSL, Chandigarh found chlorphenapyr in viscera samples of all 17 deceased.” The health minister informed the house that immediately following the first incident on December 7 last year, a medical team, along with the food safety department, visited the village to collect food and water samples, suspecting food poisoning. It may be stated here that despite an inter-ministerial team rushed by the Union minister of home affairs, Amit Shah on January 18 and experts from top health institutes making a beeline to Badhaal village besides a special investigation team of the police formed to ascertain the root-cause of 17 deaths, no conclusive report has come into public domain as yet.